The Court of Appeal has discharged an ex-parte order that was granted to Konkola Copper Mines (KCM), which had temporarily halted the seizure of the mine’s properties worth K338.9 million by Copperbelt Energy Corporation (CEC).
In this matter, the Lusaka High Court had earlier ordered the seizure of goods, chattels, and other properties belonging to KCM, valued at K338.9 million.
This followed KCM’s failure to pay CEC a debt of US$11.84 million (equivalent to K338.9 million at the time of the order), as part of a larger $29.6 million debt under a creditors’ scheme of arrangement.
Dissatisfied with the High Court’s ruling, KCM filed an application before the Court of Appeal and obtained an ex-parte order that paused the execution of the seizure, including the advertisement and sale of the seized assets, pending the outcome of its appeal.
However, in a turn of events, Court of Appeal Judge Annesie Banda-Bobo has ruled that the application for a stay of execution and sale of the seized goods was incompetently before the Court, which lacks the jurisdiction to entertain the matter.
The Court held that KCM’s application was therefore incompetent and dismissed it accordingly.
This legal dispute follows a 2019 petition by ZCCM-IH seeking to wind up KCM. In June 2024, High Court Judge Charles Kafunda sanctioned the scheme of arrangement under Zambia’s Corporate Insolvency Act.
By Darius Choonya
